Purim 2018 and Refugees from Eritrea

The absurdity of the treatment of Eritrean and Sudanese asylum seekers in Israel has reached Purimesque levels. But this reality lacks any whimsy, and ignores the commandment, “Do not mistreat or oppress a foreigner, for you were foreigners in Egypt.”

Israel and Bavel: Two Centers of Jewish Life

Imagine that alongside Zionism, a modern movement dedicated to the rebuilding of the Jewish homeland, another movement flourished that was focused on building Jewish life outside the Land of Israel. This other movement would serve as a counterpart to Zionism, one that helped establish a second center of Jewish life.

Bridging the Divide: Progressive Judaism in Israel and America

Read Cantor Galit Dadoun Cohen's reflections on her summer in Israel, and the growing Reform and progressive Jewish communities challenging the sharp division between Orthodox and secular in the Jewish State.

This Hanukkah, ARZA is working to shine a light on several challenges facing progressive Judaism in Israel. We do so with the intention to generate greater understanding, to increase the investment of Reform Jews in the Jewish State, and to center a connection to Israel in our communities. Each night for eight nights, check in with us to learn more about pressing issues and to advocate for equality, pluralism, and democracy in Israel.

This Hanukkah, ARZA is working to shine a light on several challenges facing progressive Judaism in Israel. We do so with the intention to generate greater understanding, to increase the investment of Reform Jews in the Jewish State, and to center a connection to Israel in our communities. Each night for eight nights, check in with us to learn more about pressing issues and to advocate for equality, pluralism, and democracy in Israel.

This Hanukkah, ARZA is working to shine a light on several challenges facing progressive Judaism in Israel. We do so with the intention to generate greater understanding, to increase the investment of Reform Jews in the Jewish State, and to center a connection to Israel in our communities. Each night for eight nights, check in with us to learn more about pressing issues and to advocate for equality, pluralism, and democracy in Israel.

This Hanukkah, ARZA is working to shine a light on several challenges facing progressive Judaism in Israel. We do so with the intention to generate greater understanding, to increase the investment of Reform Jews in the Jewish State, and to center a connection to Israel in our communities. Each night for eight nights, check in with us to learn more about pressing issues and to advocate for equality, pluralism, and democracy in Israel.

This Hanukkah, ARZA is working to shine a light on several challenges facing progressive Judaism in Israel. We do so with the intention to generate greater understanding, to increase the investment of Reform Jews in the Jewish State, and to center a connection to Israel in our communities. Each night for eight nights, check in with us to learn more about pressing issues and to advocate for equality, pluralism, and democracy in Israel.

This Hanukkah, ARZA is working to shine a light on several challenges facing progressive Judaism in Israel. We do so with the intention to generate greater understanding, to increase the investment of Reform Jews in the Jewish State, and to center a connection to Israel in our communities. Each night for eight nights, check in with us to learn more about pressing issues and to advocate for equality, pluralism, and democracy in Israel.

This Hanukkah, ARZA is working to shine a light on several challenges facing progressive Judaism in Israel. We do so with the intention to generate greater understanding, to increase the investment of Reform Jews in the Jewish State, and to center a connection to Israel in our communities. Each night for eight nights, check in with us to learn more about pressing issues and to advocate for equality, pluralism, and democracy in Israel.

This Hanukkah, ARZA is working to shine a light on several challenges facing progressive Judaism in Israel. We do so with the intention to generate greater understanding, to increase the investment of Reform Jews in the Jewish State, and to center a connection to Israel in our communities. Each night for eight nights, check in with us to learn more about pressing issues and to advocate for equality, pluralism, and democracy in Israel.

The Band's Visit: A Rabbinic Broadway Review

The newest Broadway sensation The Band's Visit documents the true story of an Egyptian ceremonial police band's visit to Israel. Due to a small but significant error, the trip takes an unexpected turn when the band travels to the wrong town. This unfolds into a poignant story about human connection that, suprisingly, focuses on individuals rather than regional conflict.

Tzipi Hotovely is Painfully out of Touch

Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister Tzipi Hotovely has been in the news this week because she was denied a platform to speak at Princeton. When she was given the floor less than two months ago in a meeting with top leadership of the American Jewish community, she claimed that Reform and Conservative Judaism is only relevant for Diaspora Jews and that “secular Israelis don’t need Reform at all.” She continued to explain that in her view, “secular Israelis already do whatever they want, so why do they need the Reform movement to tell them that they can do whatever they want.”

What happens when we learn that our childhood heroes are flawed? This week's parsha can teach us how to embrace complexity rather than expect perfection, a valuable lesson for our relationships to the Torah, to ourselves, and to Israel.

Building Jewish Community 3 Hours from the Nearest Torah

In a time of increasing polarization and intolerance, it was incredible to celebrate the Jewish New Year in the South. I was honored and humbled to help build bridges and connections when it feels like so much of our country and our world is broken. I was grateful for the chance to connect with people face to face and share traditions, rituals, and holy words with them. To me, this is the path to wholeness.

The Need for Progressive Zionism in Light of Charlottesville

It is not unreasonable to be moved to support the Jewish State when swastika-clad men march through the streets chanting “blood and soil.” It is not unreasonable to look toward Israel when anti-Semitic rallies have historically led to violence against Jews. And it is not unreasonable to want the Israel that we look toward to embody the values of democracy, fairness, and equality. That is why now is precisely the time to support Progressive Zionism.

A Love Letter to Israel on Tu B'Av

My dearest Israel, you have hurt me, but I will continue to show my love by fighting to make you the best state you can be.

Pluralism in Israel – Our Facts on the Ground

Look: religious pluralism, like all of Israel’s civic battles, will be fought with “facts on the ground.” The Kotel is important, as are all of our legislative fights for recognition. But it is also our responsibility to invest in the Israel that we want to see emerge—and that means investing in communities like Natan-Ya, to make the case for a thriving non-Orthodox alternative for Israelis. It can't just be about legislative battles: we have to build the Jewish alternative that we want to see.

My big gay Jewish family

Concern in Israel for children adopted into LGBTQ homes is thinly veiled homophobia--take it from someone who actually lived in one.

Why the Backlash?

Why are extremist ultra-Orthodox political parties flexing their muscle at this time? Why the onslaught of regressive, intolerant and anti-egalitarian actions? Because we are growing—and they are scared.

Blacklisting: Historical Anti-Semitism Come Alive Today

As Israel’s Chief Rabbinate proved this week, the impulse to blacklist Jews is nauseatingly present today. With our own state, we no longer need non-Jewish governments to employ this practice –we will do it to ourselves.

On Being Intelligently Pro-Israel

If we do not teach open-mindedness, tolerance, active listening, and an ability to seek out multiple viewpoints as essential tools in the Israel education process, then we are setting our students up to fail. We must provide young people with access to as much information about Israel (including its beauty and its blemishes) as possible in order to allow for independent thinking and individual conclusion drawing.

Statement on the Knesset BDS Supporter Ban

ARZA supports a vision of Israel as a Jewish and democratic state. In keeping with this vision, ARZA believes that the State of Israel must abide by the basic tenets of democracy, including the freedom of expression and freedom of speech. We maintain that the strength of our Jewish community comes from a diversity of ideologies held together by our common love for the Jewish people, Torah, and traditions.

When Adar Arrives, We Increase our Joy!

Our joy stems from recalling the story of Queen Esther’s triumph over Haman. This has become a symbol for the struggles of the Jewish People against all forms of anti-Semitism, and in recent generations has been energized by the rise of feminism: Esther and Vashti are embraced as representations of the resilience of women in the face of adversity.

Reflections On Israel

I often wonder how is it possible to have such a deep loyalty toward a place where photographs, stories and an image of culture of the Jewish people are imagined in my mind. How can you connect and love something you have never seen or touched. Afterall, we are sensory beings. Israel, my Jewish State is real to me, but I had never had the chance to visit and gain perspective through my own eyes.

ARZA, CCAR Strongly Condemn Israeli Regularization Bill

The Association of Reform Zionists of America (ARZA) and the Central Conference of American Rabbis (CCAR) strongly condemn the Knesset’s passage yesterday of the so-called “Regularization Bill” as undemocratic and shortsighted.

Solidarity Letter

For many years, you have stood by our side. In the struggle to have the State of Israel recognize our Reform rabbis, in the struggle over equal recognition of non-Orthodox conversation, in the struggle to establish an egalitarian platform at the Kotel, in the struggle for freedom of religion and conscience, in the struggle for the basic idea that there is more than one way to be Jewish. In recent years, you have been standing by our side also in the effort to ensure Israel’s democratic character and the values inscribed in Israel's Declaration of Independence.

The Z: Progressive Zionism Reimagined

There is power in names. As United States Supreme Court Justice Reinhart says in overturning Proposition 8: “A rose by any other name may smell as sweet, but to the couple desiring to enter into a committed lifelong relationship, a marriage by the name if ‘registered domestic partnership’ does not.” There are many ways to describe American Jewish relationships to Israel, but none are quite so potent as naming and claiming that connection across nations and cultures as “Zionism.” In short, I am a Zionist because I believe that there is immense power in the “Z word.”

Relationship Status: Complicated

The year living in Jerusalem as an HUC-JIR student, showed me yet another side of Israel. Regularly interacting with Israelis at the grocery store, post office, in the shuk, in the Settlements, at the Kotel, both with Women of the Wall and without, helped me realize that Israel is a country like any other. The day-to-day lives of Israelis echo our day-to-day lives, their serious and not-so-serious problems resemble ours, their happiness fluctuates just as ours does, and just like my fellow American citizens, the people of Israel are not all the same

Israel: A Relationship in the Making

Growing up, Israel was always projected upon me (a certain vision of Israel was always presented to me). It was a magical place with great food, sacred sites, and a thriving Jewish culture. But I never truly understood why I should build a personal relationship with a country halfway around the world. As I reflect upon my three unique experiences in Israel, I appreciate how each one gave me a special connection to the Jewish state. It includes a deep connection and commitment to building Jewish community, appreciating differences in understandings of Judaism, utilizing leadership to serve people, expanding my Jewish education, and pursuing social justice for all people.

I'm A Zionist Because....

When asked why I am a Zionist, my standard response is generally about Jewish public culture in the State of Israel or providing liberal religious alternatives and promoting pluralism, acceptance, and democracy.

Parashat Vayeshev: Unsettling

...The moral lesson is that just as strangers must not take for granted their right to live in their host country, so Jews must not take for granted their entitlement to the Holy Land not even after they have settled there...

A Moment of Kavanah: November 2, 2016 at the Western Wall

...Working with the Women of the Wall, bringing in the Torah scrolls, demanding equality, justice, and that the Government of Israel fulfill its negotiated promises, at that spot and at that time, we took a stand against the forces of oppression, against those trying to refuse us our prayer space.

Difficult Conversations

Balancing Beautiful and Ugly.

The World is changing and so are we. Today we are confronted with difficult questions and we must have difficult conversations. But we don't have to do them alone.

Don't Give Darkness the Final Word: Parashat Noah

It all seems so delightfully innocent when our youngsters sing of Noah and the Flood: “And Noah, he built him, he built him an arky, arky…,” together with that wondrously optimistic conclusion: “Everything is hunky dory, dory, children of the Lord!”

Why the Knesset’s first draft of the Anti-Porn bill is an affront to Democracy and Freedom in Israel…and why ARZA is Speaking Out Against It

Finally at Home: Cincinnati Jews at the Kotel, Summer 2016

Rabbi Lewis and Renee Kamrass share their experience praying at the Western Wall Plaza with an egalitarian minyan. This is their account of that Shabbat afternoon and the profound impact it has had on their lives.

Yom Kippur in Jerusalem

It is a powerful feeling to observe the holiest days of the year in the Holy Land. A few years later, here's a reflection on the experience.

The King is in the Field: Lessons of Elul

For one month of the year, the month of Elul, we are responsible for deep introspection, with the goal of arriving at Rosh Hashanah, fully aware of ourselves, what we have done, what we want to do, and where we are going. Elul is our time to connect to Israel---ourselves, our people, and our land.

Even More Stories From ARZA

Purim 2018 and Refugees from Eritrea

February 28, 2018

The absurdity of the treatment of Eritrean and Sudanese asylum seekers in Israel has reached Purimesque levels. But this reality lacks any whimsy, and ignores the commandment, “Do not mistreat or oppress a foreigner, for you were foreigners in Egypt.”

Israel and Bavel: Two Centers of Jewish Life

February 27, 2018

Imagine that alongside Zionism, a modern movement dedicated to the rebuilding of the Jewish homeland, another movement flourished that was focused on building Jewish life outside the Land of Israel. This other movement would serve as a counterpart to Zionism, one that helped establish a second center of Jewish life.

Bridging the Divide: Progressive Judaism in Israel and America

December 25, 2017

Read Cantor Galit Dadoun Cohen's reflections on her summer in Israel, and the growing Reform and progressive Jewish communities challenging the sharp division between Orthodox and secular in the Jewish State.

This Hanukkah, ARZA is working to shine a light on several challenges facing progressive Judaism in Israel. We do so with the intention to generate greater understanding, to increase the investment of Reform Jews in the Jewish State, and to center a connection to Israel in our communities. Each night for eight nights, check in with us to learn more about pressing issues and to advocate for equality, pluralism, and democracy in Israel.

This Hanukkah, ARZA is working to shine a light on several challenges facing progressive Judaism in Israel. We do so with the intention to generate greater understanding, to increase the investment of Reform Jews in the Jewish State, and to center a connection to Israel in our communities. Each night for eight nights, check in with us to learn more about pressing issues and to advocate for equality, pluralism, and democracy in Israel.

This Hanukkah, ARZA is working to shine a light on several challenges facing progressive Judaism in Israel. We do so with the intention to generate greater understanding, to increase the investment of Reform Jews in the Jewish State, and to center a connection to Israel in our communities. Each night for eight nights, check in with us to learn more about pressing issues and to advocate for equality, pluralism, and democracy in Israel.

This Hanukkah, ARZA is working to shine a light on several challenges facing progressive Judaism in Israel. We do so with the intention to generate greater understanding, to increase the investment of Reform Jews in the Jewish State, and to center a connection to Israel in our communities. Each night for eight nights, check in with us to learn more about pressing issues and to advocate for equality, pluralism, and democracy in Israel.

This Hanukkah, ARZA is working to shine a light on several challenges facing progressive Judaism in Israel. We do so with the intention to generate greater understanding, to increase the investment of Reform Jews in the Jewish State, and to center a connection to Israel in our communities. Each night for eight nights, check in with us to learn more about pressing issues and to advocate for equality, pluralism, and democracy in Israel.

This Hanukkah, ARZA is working to shine a light on several challenges facing progressive Judaism in Israel. We do so with the intention to generate greater understanding, to increase the investment of Reform Jews in the Jewish State, and to center a connection to Israel in our communities. Each night for eight nights, check in with us to learn more about pressing issues and to advocate for equality, pluralism, and democracy in Israel.

This Hanukkah, ARZA is working to shine a light on several challenges facing progressive Judaism in Israel. We do so with the intention to generate greater understanding, to increase the investment of Reform Jews in the Jewish State, and to center a connection to Israel in our communities. Each night for eight nights, check in with us to learn more about pressing issues and to advocate for equality, pluralism, and democracy in Israel.

This Hanukkah, ARZA is working to shine a light on several challenges facing progressive Judaism in Israel. We do so with the intention to generate greater understanding, to increase the investment of Reform Jews in the Jewish State, and to center a connection to Israel in our communities. Each night for eight nights, check in with us to learn more about pressing issues and to advocate for equality, pluralism, and democracy in Israel.

The Band's Visit: A Rabbinic Broadway Review

November 14, 2017

The newest Broadway sensation The Band's Visit documents the true story of an Egyptian ceremonial police band's visit to Israel. Due to a small but significant error, the trip takes an unexpected turn when the band travels to the wrong town. This unfolds into a poignant story about human connection that, suprisingly, focuses on individuals rather than regional conflict.

Tzipi Hotovely is Painfully out of Touch

November 9, 2017

Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister Tzipi Hotovely has been in the news this week because she was denied a platform to speak at Princeton. When she was given the floor less than two months ago in a meeting with top leadership of the American Jewish community, she claimed that Reform and Conservative Judaism is only relevant for Diaspora Jews and that “secular Israelis don’t need Reform at all.” She continued to explain that in her view, “secular Israelis already do whatever they want, so why do they need the Reform movement to tell them that they can do whatever they want.”

What happens when we learn that our childhood heroes are flawed? This week's parsha can teach us how to embrace complexity rather than expect perfection, a valuable lesson for our relationships to the Torah, to ourselves, and to Israel.

Building Jewish Community 3 Hours from the Nearest Torah

September 26, 2017

In a time of increasing polarization and intolerance, it was incredible to celebrate the Jewish New Year in the South. I was honored and humbled to help build bridges and connections when it feels like so much of our country and our world is broken. I was grateful for the chance to connect with people face to face and share traditions, rituals, and holy words with them. To me, this is the path to wholeness.

The Need for Progressive Zionism in Light of Charlottesville

August 21, 2017

It is not unreasonable to be moved to support the Jewish State when swastika-clad men march through the streets chanting “blood and soil.” It is not unreasonable to look toward Israel when anti-Semitic rallies have historically led to violence against Jews. And it is not unreasonable to want the Israel that we look toward to embody the values of democracy, fairness, and equality. That is why now is precisely the time to support Progressive Zionism.

A Love Letter to Israel on Tu B'Av

August 7, 2017

My dearest Israel, you have hurt me, but I will continue to show my love by fighting to make you the best state you can be.

Pluralism in Israel – Our Facts on the Ground

July 20, 2017

Look: religious pluralism, like all of Israel’s civic battles, will be fought with “facts on the ground.” The Kotel is important, as are all of our legislative fights for recognition. But it is also our responsibility to invest in the Israel that we want to see emerge—and that means investing in communities like Natan-Ya, to make the case for a thriving non-Orthodox alternative for Israelis. It can't just be about legislative battles: we have to build the Jewish alternative that we want to see.

My big gay Jewish family

July 20, 2017

Concern in Israel for children adopted into LGBTQ homes is thinly veiled homophobia--take it from someone who actually lived in one.

Why the Backlash?

July 14, 2017

Why are extremist ultra-Orthodox political parties flexing their muscle at this time? Why the onslaught of regressive, intolerant and anti-egalitarian actions? Because we are growing—and they are scared.

Blacklisting: Historical Anti-Semitism Come Alive Today

July 11, 2017

As Israel’s Chief Rabbinate proved this week, the impulse to blacklist Jews is nauseatingly present today. With our own state, we no longer need non-Jewish governments to employ this practice –we will do it to ourselves.

ARZA Statement on the Kotel Crisis and Conversion Bill: Two Attempts to Disenfranchise Non-Orthodox Jews

June 26, 2017

We call upon the Israeli government and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to resume their commitment to establishing a Kotel for all, and to reject the conversion bill that would hand more unfettered powered to the ultra-Orthodox political parties and Chief Rabbinate. We call upon synagogues in every religious stream, Federations, and all Jews to demand that Israel enact measures to be open and inclusive to all forms of Jewish expression in the face of antidemocratic forces from within the government and society at large.

Start a 'Seventh Day' Conversation in Your Community

June 19, 2017

Want to bring ARZA learning about the Six Day War to your community?

In six days, Israel won a war that would ensure its survival.
But what happened on the seventh day, after the war was won?

Take a look at these excellent resources for learning about the Six Day War in your community.

In his memoir, 'No Country for Jewish Liberals,' journalist and Haaretz editor Larry Derfner explains how he can live – and sleep at night – in a country whose racism and aggression he abhors.

Jerusalem, a Fractured Unity: Yom Yerushalayim 5777

May 23, 2017

A vision of heavenly Jerusalem floats above it all, reminding us that this is not the way it is meant to be. Jerusalem also carries a whiff of peace—as ‘ir shalom, the city of wholeness. The reality may be painful and fractured, but the ideal is that we should learn how to pray and live side by side with one another.

The Seventh Day: Israel at a Crossroads on the 50th Anniversary of the Six Day War

May 23, 2017

Register now for an afternoon of learning on the complex legacy of the 50th anniversary of the Six Day War and what it means for Israel and the Jewish community. Featuring a concert by Banot!

Reconciling Victory and Inequality, Triumph and Struggle: Fifty Years After the Six Day War

May 18, 2017

On June 11th in New York City, join us for "The Seventh Day: Israel at a Crossroads on the 50th Anniversary of the Six Day War. Enrich your understanding of the relationship between contemporary Israel and the Diaspora as we honestly and openly ask: where are we as we mark these 50 years, where do we need to go, and how will we get there?

The New “Nationality Law” Defines Israel as a Jewish State. What Could be Wrong with That?

May 8, 2017

On Sunday, May 7, a Knesset committee approved a long-gestating “Nationality Bill” that would certify as a Basic Law that Israel is, indeed, the world’s Jewish State. Why would any Zionist oppose a law that is such a no-brainer?

Hitler Didn't Create Israel. Modernity did.

April 20, 2017

To understand Israel today, one must realize that the Shoah is part of the collective story of the Jewish people. But our connections to the land—and to one another, to am yisrael—were in place long before the Nazis’ vile rise to power.

Double (and a half) Standard - Israel at the United Nations

April 18, 2017

With a right-wing Israeli government favoring the support of right-wing organizations such as the World Jewish Congress, it is now more important than ever for liberal Jews who don’t subscribe to this one-dimensional and one-sided support of Israel to raise their voices.

Oslo on Broadway: The Long Shorter Road

April 13, 2017

“There is a short road that is actually long, and a long road that is actually short.”

—a young boy to Rabbi Yehoshua, Talmud, Eruvin 53b

The play Oslo opened this week on Broadway: a timely, talky drama set in 1993 during the secret talks between Israelis and the Palestinian Liberation Organization...

The AIPAC drinking game

April 4, 2017

Memo to liberal, non-Orthodox Jews (as well as Jewish liberals): if fervent support for Israel becomes largely limited to a. Republicans and b. Orthodox Jews, then we will have massive challenges. Support for Israel will become an ideological ghetto.

That’s the sobering news.

When Adar Arrives, We Increase our Joy!

February 27, 2017

Our joy stems from recalling the story of Queen Esther’s triumph over Haman. This has become a symbol for the struggles of the Jewish People against all forms of anti-Semitism, and in recent generations has been energized by the rise of feminism: Esther and Vashti are embraced as representations of the resilience of women in the face of adversity.

Reflections On Israel

February 27, 2017

I often wonder how is it possible to have such a deep loyalty toward a place where photographs, stories and an image of culture of the Jewish people are imagined in my mind. How can you connect and love something you have never seen or touched. Afterall, we are sensory beings. Israel, my Jewish State is real to me, but I had never had the chance to visit and gain perspective through my own eyes.

Solidarity Letter

February 2, 2017

For many years, you have stood by our side. In the struggle to have the State of Israel recognize our Reform rabbis, in the struggle over equal recognition of non-Orthodox conversation, in the struggle to establish an egalitarian platform at the Kotel, in the struggle for freedom of religion and conscience, in the struggle for the basic idea that there is more than one way to be Jewish. In recent years, you have been standing by our side also in the effort to ensure Israel’s democratic character and the values inscribed in Israel's Declaration of Independence.

ARZA Supports the State of Israel’s Dismantling of the Illegal West Bank Outpost Amona

February 1, 2017

ARZA strongly supports the Israeli government’s dismantling of the illegal outpost of Amona and the evacuation of its 40 families, a difficult endeavor that ultimately will strengthen democratic institutions and the rule of law in Israel.

Parashat Va’era: Israel, Redemption, and That Fifth Cup of Wine

January 23, 2017

Was redemption complete when the sea closed over the pursuing Egyptians and we were finally on our own in the desert? Or was it still a work in progress, awaiting the final stage, national sovereignty in our own land? The question of four cups or five can be seen as not just hairsplitting, but as a deep question about freedom, responsibility, and the meaning of Israel.

Vayigash: Reconciliation of a Family - and a Nation

January 4, 2017

As we see from the Haftarah, which fortifies the messages of the Torah portion, one must work to create the proper conditions to bring people closer through נגישות. The messages are timely, for today alienation, despair and hopelessness reign strong.

Israel: A Relationship in the Making

December 27, 2016

Growing up, Israel was always projected upon me (a certain vision of Israel was always presented to me). It was a magical place with great food, sacred sites, and a thriving Jewish culture. But I never truly understood why I should build a personal relationship with a country halfway around the world. As I reflect upon my three unique experiences in Israel, I appreciate how each one gave me a special connection to the Jewish state. It includes a deep connection and commitment to building Jewish community, appreciating differences in understandings of Judaism, utilizing leadership to serve people, expanding my Jewish education, and pursuing social justice for all people.

The Z: Progressive Zionism Reimagined

December 27, 2016

There is power in names. As United States Supreme Court Justice Reinhart says in overturning Proposition 8: “A rose by any other name may smell as sweet, but to the couple desiring to enter into a committed lifelong relationship, a marriage by the name if ‘registered domestic partnership’ does not.” There are many ways to describe American Jewish relationships to Israel, but none are quite so potent as naming and claiming that connection across nations and cultures as “Zionism.” In short, I am a Zionist because I believe that there is immense power in the “Z word.”

Relationship Status: Complicated

December 27, 2016

The year living in Jerusalem as an HUC-JIR student, showed me yet another side of Israel. Regularly interacting with Israelis at the grocery store, post office, in the shuk, in the Settlements, at the Kotel, both with Women of the Wall and without, helped me realize that Israel is a country like any other. The day-to-day lives of Israelis echo our day-to-day lives, their serious and not-so-serious problems resemble ours, their happiness fluctuates just as ours does, and just like my fellow American citizens, the people of Israel are not all the same

ARZA’s Response to UN Security Council Resolution 2334

December 25, 2016

I'm A Zionist Because....

December 22, 2016

When asked why I am a Zionist, my standard response is generally about Jewish public culture in the State of Israel or providing liberal religious alternatives and promoting pluralism, acceptance, and democracy.

Parashat Vayeshev: Unsettling

December 21, 2016

...The moral lesson is that just as strangers must not take for granted their right to live in their host country, so Jews must not take for granted their entitlement to the Holy Land not even after they have settled there...

The Other Kotel Bill

December 21, 2016

ARZA vigorously opposes the “other Kotel” bill, which would ban Jewish expression as embraced by the majority of North America’s Jews at Judaism’s holiest site.

On Sunday, December 18, Knesset lawmakers endorsed legislation that would outlaw practices deemed “offensive” throughout the entire area around the Western Wall. Under the proposed bill, violators would be punished by six months in jail or a 10,000 shekel ($2,600) fine.

Israel on Fire

The Association of Reform Zionists of America condemns the shocking act of hate and violence against Kehilat Ra’anan in Ra’anana on Thursday. We send our loving support to all our friends in the Reform community there, and we call upon the police to swiftly bring the perpetrators to justice. We demand that all of Israel’s leaders condemn the climate of incitement that makes an act like this possible.

Hayei Sarah—Isaac & Ishmael: Hebron’s Complicated Legacy

November 21, 2016

Around fifteen years ago I saw a documentary called What I Saw in Hebron, made by a descendant of a Jewish family who had lived in Hebron for generations until they fled after the riots in 1929. The film layered reminiscences of Jewish survivors with a cinema verité-style documentation of the few hundred current Jewish settlers (and almost as many soldiers who guard them against the 40,000 Palestinian residents of the city).

ARZA Statement on Steve Bannon and Two-State Solution

November 16, 2016

ARZA joins Reform Movement Partners in Deep Concern about Steve Bannon and Calls upon President-elect Trump to Support a Two-State Solution

Diaspora-Israel Day

November 7, 2016

November 8th this year is an exciting day! The start of something big!

ARZA is delighted to share this wonderful anthology of “Diaspora-Israel Day” materials from our partners at the Israel Movement for Reform & Progressive Judaism

A Moment of Kavanah: November 2, 2016 at the Western Wall

November 3, 2016

...Working with the Women of the Wall, bringing in the Torah scrolls, demanding equality, justice, and that the Government of Israel fulfill its negotiated promises, at that spot and at that time, we took a stand against the forces of oppression, against those trying to refuse us our prayer space.

Don't Give Darkness the Final Word: Parashat Noah

November 1, 2016

It all seems so delightfully innocent when our youngsters sing of Noah and the Flood: “And Noah, he built him, he built him an arky, arky…,” together with that wondrously optimistic conclusion: “Everything is hunky dory, dory, children of the Lord!”

But there is a darkness throughout the Flood account...

Difficult Conversations

November 1, 2016

Balancing Beautiful and Ugly.

The World is changing and so are we. Today we are confronted with difficult questions and we must have difficult conversations. But we don't have to do them alone.

Why the Knesset’s first draft of the Anti-Porn bill is an affront to Democracy and Freedom in Israel…and why ARZA is Speaking Out Against It

Yom Kippur in Jerusalem

September 22, 2016

It is a powerful feeling to observe the holiest days of the year in the Holy Land. A few years later, here's a reflection on the experience.

Anat Hoffman's Prayer for Israel

September 21, 2016

In this sacred moment, give us hope for Israel and her future.

Finally at Home: Cincinnati Jews at the Kotel, Summer 2016

September 20, 2016

Rabbi Lewis and Renee Kamrass share their experience praying at the Western Wall Plaza with an egalitarian minyan. This is their account of that Shabbat afternoon and the profound impact it has had on their lives.

The King is in the Field: Lessons of Elul

September 6, 2016

For one month of the year, the month of Elul, we are responsible for deep introspection, with the goal of arriving at Rosh Hashanah, fully aware of ourselves, what we have done, what we want to do, and where we are going. Elul is our time to connect to Israel---ourselves, our people, and our land.